Wales bans junk food displays near tills

Telegraph

26-03-2025

Wales has banned supermarkets from promoting junk food in prominent spots around the shop in an attempt to tackle obesity.
The ban will stop foods high in fat, salt and sugar from being placed at store entrances and by checkouts.
It is hoped that the move will reduce impulse purchases of unhealthy foods, snacks and drinks, that have been strategically placed to reach the most customers.
The Welsh Conservatives criticised the move as 'nanny state nonsense'.
The rules, which were introduced in England in 2022 under the Tories, will come into effect from March next year.
Wales has the biggest obesity problem in the UK with a third of its adult population considered obese, analysis by the charity Nesta has found.
The ban, which was approved following a narrow vote in the Welsh Parliament on Tuesday, will mean that unhealthy foods such as chocolates, breakfast pastries and pizzas will have to be removed from shop entrances and checkouts, while unlimited refills on sugary drinks will also be banned in restaurants.
The move is intended to limit impulse purchases and help tackle the growing problem of obesity in Wales.
It will apply to businesses with 50 or more employees, and anyone breaching the rules faces a fine.
Jeremy Miles, health secretary for Wales, insisted that 'obesity is one of the main risks to our health in Wales' and needed to be tackled.
'The strategy for promotion used by the food industry has an influence on what we eat and ultimately contributes to high levels of obesity and poor health outcomes in our communities,' he said.
The measures were criticised by opposition groups, with Plaid Cymru arguing they did not go far enough while the Welsh Conservatives said they were 'too heavy-handed'.
A vote on the measures passed in the Senedd by 25 votes to 24.
The effectiveness of the ban has yet to be properly assessed in England, and similar proposals are being considered in Scotland.
In a statement after the vote, Mr Miles said the move 'will have a significant impact on the health of our nation for years to come'.
He added: 'We want to make it easier for people to make healthier choices and we'll achieve this by improving the food environment around them.
'If we ensure healthier food and drinks are more available, accessible and visible to people in shops and stores, it will support our efforts to reduce obesity rates and improve public health.'
Mabon ap Gwynfor, Plaid Cymru's health spokesman, said 'we need to see more being done' if Welsh Labour is serious about tackling the 'huge pressures' obesity places on health services.
He said: 'These regulations only offer a part of the solution that risks being unsuccessful without a whole range of policies required to truly get to grips with obesity.
'It's stick, without the necessary carrot.'
James Evans MS, Welsh Conservative shadow cabinet secretary for health, described the plans as 'nanny state nonsense that will hit the poorest people in their pockets'.
He said: 'Keir Starmer promised to ease the cost of living and hasn't, with Welsh Labour following suit here by pushing up costs for working people.
'Welsh Conservatives believe in personal responsibility. Efforts to tackle obesity must be focused on providing support for grassroots sports clubs, increase the amount of sport played in schools, and encouraging more people to get active – not forcibly pushing up the price of the weekly shop.'